As a non-US citizen - even though I've been the only Brit in remote teams of Americans - I find this really hard to make sense of.

At least in the UK, if I saw this loaded on someone else's screen at work, I might raise an eyebrow initially, but there wouldn't be any consequences that don't first consider context. As soon as the context is provided ("it's comparing AI models, look! Cool, right?!") everyone would get on with their jobs.

What would be the consequence of you viewing this at work?

How would the situation be handled?

Is the problem a HR thing - like, would people get sacked for this? Or is it like a personal conduct/temptation, that colleagues who see it might not be able to restrain themselves or something?

I think it’s mostly puritanical bigotry.

I think one part of it (not all of it) is that the US has a long history of women being sexually harassed in the workplace, in various ways. It's not nearly as bad as it used to be, but it's not fully solved everywhere.

(Note: Statements suggesting that sexual harassment exists at all make some people on the Internet flip out angrily, but I interpret your questions as in good faith, and I'm trying to answer in good faith.)

One example of why that that harassment context is relevant: if you were a woman, wouldn't you think it was insensitive for a male colleague to send you an image that was obviously designed to be sexually suggestive, and with the female as the sex object? Is he consciously harassing you, or just being oblivious to why this is inappropriate?

For a separate reason that this is a problem in the workplace: besides the real impact to morale and how colleagues respect each other, even the most sociopathic US companies want to avoid sexual harassment lawsuits and public scandals.

For reasons like these, and others, if someone, say, posted that isolated maid image to workplace chat, then I think there's a good chance that a manager or HR would say something to the employee if they found out, and/or (without directly referring to that incident) communicate to everyone about appropriate practices.

But if there was a pattern of insensitive/oblivious/creepy behavior by this employee, or if someone complained to manager/HR about the incident, or if there was legal action against the company (regarding this incident, or a different sexual harassment situation), then I guess the employee might be terminated.

If I were a manager in a company, and one of my reports posted an image like this, I'd probably say something quietly to them, and much more gently than the above (e.g., "Uh, that image is a bit in a direction we want to stay away from in the office", or maybe even just the slightest concerned glance), and most people would get it. Just a little learning moment, like we all have many of. But if there were a trickier situation, or I was under orders, I might have to ask HR about it (and if I did, hopefully that particular HR person is helpful, and that particular company is reasonable).